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October 23, 2013

World Series 1: Red Sox 8, Cardinals 1

Boston jumped on Adam Wainwright immediately, making the tall righthander throw 60 pitches in the first two innings. Add in some horrible fielding by the Cardinals and the Red Sox's ninth consecutive World Series victory (dating back to 2004) was a piece of cake.

Jacoby Ellsbury worked a seven-pitch walk to begin the bottom of the first. After Shane Victorino lined out to left, Dustin Pedroia stroked a single to center. On David Ortiz's grounder to second, Matt Carpenter shoveled the ball to shortstop Pete Kozma; the ball glanced off the tip of Kozma's glove, but second base umpire Dana DeMuth - who had the play directly in front of him - blew the call, saying that Kozma had actually caught the ball, but dropped it while transferring it to his bare hand. Thankfully, after John Farrell came out to argue, the six umpires got together and overruled the embarrassingly bad original call. That meant Boston had the bases loaded with one out. Mike Napoli took two balls and then shot a double to the gap in left-center. It took two hops to the wall, where it was slightly bobbled by center fielder Shane Robinson. That allowed all three runners to score.

Boston became the 10th team to score at least three runs in the first inning of a World Series Game 1.

In the second, Stephen Drew popped up a pitch to the mound. Wainwright called for it, glanced at his catcher, and then never raised his glove, and watched as the ball dropped in front of him. David Ross followed with a single of his own. After Ellsbury popped to left, Victorino reached on another fielding error by Kozma. Again, Boston had the bases loaded. Pedroia singled through the shortstop hole, bringing Drew in. Ortiz crushed a ball to deep right. It looked like it had the distance for a grand slam, but Carlos Beltran tracked it perfectly, reached over the short bullpen wall, and pulled the ball back. It ended up being only a sacrifice fly, as the Red Sox took a 5-0 lead. Beltran, who banged hard into the padded wall while making the catch, left the game with a right rib contusion.

Meanwhile, Lester (7.2-5-0-1-8, 112) was having little trouble with the Cardinals hitters, allowing only one hit through the first three innings. In the fourth, St. Louis loaded the bases on a walk and two singles, but David Freese tapped a 2-1 pitch right back to the mound. Lester had plenty of time to set himself before starting a 1-2-3 inning-ending double play.

In the fifth, two singles and an error by Jonny Gomes in left field put runners at second and third with two outs. Jon Jay, who came off the bench when Beltran was pulled, grounded out to shortstop to end the threat. Lester then retired the side in order in the sixth and seventh. He also got the first two batters in the eighth before being relieved, walking off the field to a standing ovation.

Lester was the first starting pitcher to hold an opponent scoreless in the opening game of the World Series since Cincinnati's Jose Rijo (1990, against Oakland).

Boston padded its lead in the seventh when Pedroia reached on a two-out throwing error by Freese at third base and Ortiz blasted lefty reliever Kevin Siegrist's first pitch into the right-center field bleachers.

Daniel Nava began the eighth with a pinch-hit double, took third on a wild pitch, and scored on Xander Bogaerts lineout to left.

Ryan Dempster pitched the ninth and gave up a home run to Matt Holliday. He struck out Matt Adams to end the game.

Napoli and Ortiz each drove in three runs. Ortiz and Pedroia both had two hits and scored two runs. Ellsbury's BB to open the first inning was Boston's only walk.

This is the fourth time the Boston Red Sox and St. Louis Cardinals have met in the World Series: 1946, 1967, 2004, and now 2013.

The only two players from the 2004 World Series still with their teams: Boston's DH David Ortiz and St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina. Mike Matheny, the 2004 Cardinals' starting catcher, is now the St. Louis manager. ... If you are curious, there will be no lunar eclipse during this series.

Teams that have won Game 1 have won 20 of the past 24 World Series. ... This is only the third time in the Wild Card Era (since 1995) that teams with the league's best records have met in the World Series. The other times: 1995 (Cleveland-Atlanta) and 1999 (Yankees-Atlanta).

More info on the starters: Wainwright and Lester ... Carl Yastrzemski will throw out the first pitch.

MLB looks at "How They Were Built": Red Sox and Cardinals ... WEEI offers a primer on the Cardinals. ... SoSH also asks: Who Are The Cardinals?